Watch Wiki: a suggestion

[Oliver Mundy]

As an appendage to the current discussion about an image database, I should like to put forward an idea which has been at the back of my mind for some time: namely, a 'Watch Wiki', a collective encyclopaedia of watch lore, built on the well-known model of Wikipedia itself. The essential principle of this, of course, is that anybody can contribute new articles or amendments to existing ones, and this includes the uploading of photographs.

Quite a number of people within our group have created informative websites dealing with their own areas of interest - myself included. I must admit that my own 'Watch Cabinet' has grown very dusty of late (it is not easy to continue working on such a project when personal problems have forced you to sell off some of the finest exhibits and to let several others fall into heartbreaking states of disrepair which you cannot afford to remedy); but, even without these difficulties, the result would always have been restricted by the limits of my collection and my knowledge, and the same must be true of any one person's efforts. A collective project would transcend these limitations; it might even, in time, enable us to set right the grievous lack of readily available documentation in areas such as 19th-century Swiss watchmaking or the Swedish, Austrian and Italian watch industries.

I realise that this may turn out to be impracticable for reasons of cost; but I do know at least that the Wiki software is available to the public, and I am aware of at least one other discussion group which has used it to set up an interactive encyclopaedia of this kind.

Is this worth pursuing?

Oliver Mundy.

[Oliver Mundy]

As an appendage to the current discussion about an image database, I should like to put forward an idea which has been at the back of my mind for some time: namely, a 'Watch Wiki', a collective encyclopaedia of watch lore, built on the well-known model of Wikipedia itself. The essential principle of this, of course, is that anybody can contribute new articles or amendments to existing ones, and this includes the uploading of photographs.

Quite a number of people within our group have created informative websites dealing with their own areas of interest - myself included. I must admit that my own 'Watch Cabinet' has grown very dusty of late (it is not easy to continue working on such a project when personal problems have forced you to sell off some of the finest exhibits and to let several others fall into heartbreaking states of disrepair which you cannot afford to remedy); but, even without these difficulties, the result would always have been restricted by the limits of my collection and my knowledge, and the same must be true of any one person's efforts. A collective project would transcend these limitations; it might even, in time, enable us to set right the grievous lack of readily available documentation in areas such as 19th-century Swiss watchmaking or the Swedish, Austrian and Italian watch industries.

I realise that this may turn out to be impracticable for reasons of cost; but I do know at least that the Wiki software is available to the public, and I am aware of at least one other discussion group which has used it to set up an interactive encyclopaedia of this kind.

Is this worth pursuing?

Oliver Mundy.

[Tom McIntyre]

I have been looking at this also. I just have not had the time to explore just how to do it. The concept seems pretty simple and there are quite a few examples in place in other topical areas including Wiki's themselves.

I think we also have a group springing out to the Scientific Horology Chapter that is doing something similar with Horological Bibliography.

[Grouse]

Take a look at Sam's Special Project. It is still in its infancy, but has a lot of possibilities. Much of it is direct inputs by the members.

[Nachtmotte]

Hello Oliver,
I´m also involved in this discussion about images.
Your idea with Watch Wiki might be a right direction as dangerous: everybody can write about watches themes.
BUT: Who´ll check and prove the storys about the truth at the end? Watch Wiki might be only a story board without a personal control to check written storys, so I´m afraid about.
If the first person write something, the second person could write the opposite, the third something in illusions, and so on...
Watch Wiki might be a good idea at all but not complete.
Best regards
Tony

[Oliver Mundy]

Tony (Nachtmotte) is of course right about the potential weakness of the Wiki format. However, I feel that the risk of imperfect or absolutely false information could be successfully controlled. Our subject is not one which attracts cranks or bigots; false statements usually emanate from people who have something to sell rather than from the kind of genuine researcher who would be interested in contributing to such a project. If an incorrect statement does creep into circulation (such as the idea that General Sam Houston was once a watchmaker in northern England, or that mid-19th-century Liverpool watches signed 'John Harrison' were actually made by the hero of 'Longitude')*, someone will readily be found to correct it, just as happens when statements of this kind are made on eBay. In the Wiki format any member can edit and if necessary overwrite any other member's articles, so that false information simply disappears as soon as somebody comes forward who knows better and is willing to take the trouble to say so.

I was not aware of Sam Kirk's Chapter 159 project and am grateful to Gary Grouse, and also to Peg Leg who has written separately, for bringing it to my notice. I am preparing some images for submission to this. However, what I have in mind is something wider in scope than a collection of annotated pictures; it would be an alphabetical illustrated dictionary embodying technical terms, descriptions of tools and simple notes on repair techniques, tables of hallmarks, notes on important makers, inventors and theorists, thematic photo-galleries showing how watches can be dated by details of dial, balance-cock etc., and of course links to more specialised sources - in short, a comprehensive encyclopaedia of watch lore. Perhaps my own 'Watch Glossary' might serve as a very small nucleus from which something much more valuable could grow.

*Both tales have been examined on this board in the past.

Oliver Mundy.

[peg leg]

Oliver, all the things you reference are built and working (special projects, tools, repair techniques). I will send you a seperate email with an email address for you to begin exploring the site map.

Keith R...

[IMHO]

Excellent idea Oliver, and good to hear others are already working on editions. I've used Wiki before for work-based internal data and information management and it's a pearl of an application.

Peg Leg, can you share what software applications are being considered or have been adopted for the Chapter 159 or 185 solutions mentioned here?

Dave

[peg leg]

Dave, I'm with Web Horology which is linked to 159. The reference in my post are for all the special areas being developed by Sam's programer for special projects ect...The site map.


Keith R...

[Grouse]

Sam's Special Project is being served up by his own private Web Site www.kirxklox.com (http://www.kirxklox.com). What you see is like the surface of an Iceberg.

Dave, he is unwilling to divulge any of the programming techniques being used.